Chapter 19: Multiplication

The rice pounded by Jin Xiaoye by hand was certainly not as white as the rice ground by modern machines, but it was much softer than the previous brown rice!

When Li Qingzhi took a bite of the white rice that night, he felt an unparalleled sweetness.

Even without any side dishes, he could easily eat a pot of this rice alone, and there was even salted fish on the table…

Li Qingzhi felt like he could eat two pots himself.

At the beginning of the apocalypse, he was only eighteen years old, and although his family was not wealthy, they were not poor either.

Back then, he enjoyed meat and wouldn’t have thought white rice could be so delicious.

But this time… he felt that white rice was truly delicious!

He wasn’t the only one with this feeling. Li Laogen and the two children also enjoyed it very much. Li Laogen even said, “The first time I went to the county town when I was a child, I saw a child about my age holding a bowl of white rice and eating it at the doorstep. That rice was even whiter than what we’re eating today… I remember thinking, I wish I could eat white rice every day.”

Li Ermao immediately said, “I want to eat white rice every day too!”

Even Li Damao said, “White rice is really delicious.”

Li Qingzhi said, “We will definitely be able to eat white rice every day in the future.” How could his children not even have enough white rice to eat?

And himself… he would eventually live the days where white rice was abundant!

By then, he would eat three bowls in one meal!

“Dad, really?” Li Ermao looked at Li Qing curiously, and Li Damao’s eyes were also full of expectation.

“Of course it’s true, Dad won’t lie to you.” Li Qingzhi affirmed.

This era was very unfamiliar to him, but he would strive to make sure his family lived good days!

Just as Li Qingzhi finished speaking, Li Laogen said, “Your dad is just trying to please you! It’s not easy to eat enough every day, let alone white rice every day…”

Jin Xiaoye also thought Li Qingzhi was just trying to please the children, but they were still young, so a little coaxing was okay.

She glared at Li Laogen and said to the two children, “Damao, Ermao, when we save enough money to buy two more acres of land, we’ll be able to eat white rice every day.”

Jin Xiaoye’s goal had always been to buy two more acres of land and save some money for Damao and Ermao to marry.

Their family’s two acres of land was too little; buying two more acres would ensure that Damao and Ermao could support the family in the future.

Of course, if the two children could find a livelihood other than farming, that would be even better.

Li Laogen was afraid of Jin Xiaoye, so he immediately said, “That’s right, with two more acres of land, we’ll be able to eat white rice every day, hehe.”

Li Damao and Li Ermao immediately cheered.

For the next half month, Jin Xiaoye didn’t go to the county town again, but instead worked in the fields.

Earning money in the county town was important, but grains were the foundation of their lives.

Half a month later, Jin Xiaoye purchased some items from the villagers and prepared to go to the county town the next day.

The things she bought were mainly chicken and duck eggs, as well as some vegetables—there were too few vegetables grown at home.

Of course, she didn’t forget the rooster that Sister Wang wanted.

However, since it’s hot now, it’s better to slaughter this rooster before she sets off tomorrow.

“Tomorrow, there will be chicken blood from slaughtering the rooster. I’ll cook it for you to eat and replenish your body.” Jin Xiaoye said to Li Qingzhi.

Li Qingzhi had been back for a month already, but he was still very thin. Whenever there was a strong wind, she felt like it could blow Li Qingzhi away.

Although he was thin, Li Qingzhi’s health had improved a lot. Tomorrow, when she went to the county town, Li Qingzhi planned to go with her.

She didn’t have much to do tomorrow either, so it was fine to walk slowly… Jin Xiaoye agreed to Li Qingzhi’s request and planned to take her time tomorrow, taking an hour to walk half an hour’s distance.

Since Li Qingzhi was going to the county town, Li Damao and Li Ermao naturally wanted to go with him. These two children were actually stronger than Li Qingzhi; Li Qingzhi might not be able to walk, but they were used to running since childhood and wouldn’t have any problems.

When Li Damao and Li Ermao were very young, Jin Xiaoye would sometimes carry or carry them to the county town, but they had long since forgotten those memories. In the past year or two, Jin Xiaoye hadn’t taken them to the county town…

The two children were especially excited about going to the county town tomorrow.

Li Qingzhi was also in a good mood; his health had finally improved a bit, and he could go to the county town to find work.

Five years ago, Uncle Jin had once introduced a job to the original owner, but at that time, Uncle Jin only knew that the shop was hiring and couldn’t guarantee that the original owner would get the job if he went.

Uncle Jin was just a kitchen worker; he might have some information, but he didn’t have that much influence.

Li Qingzhi was very clear that with his current sickly appearance, it would be difficult to rely on Uncle Jin to find another job, so he had to work hard on his own.

“Mom, is the county town very big?”

“Mom, what does a big ship look like?”

“Mom…”

Li Damao and Li Ermao were pestering Jin Xiaoye with questions, while Jin Xiaoye responded while sorting out the chicken feathers.

People in ancient times would utilize everything to the fullest, including chicken feathers and duck feathers; they wouldn’t waste anything.

Even in modern times… during the material shortage of the 1970s and 1980s, chicken feathers and duck feathers could be sold for money. There were even peddlers who would walk from village to village with a shoulder pole, shouting “chicken feathers for sugar”, eventually growing into famous entrepreneurs.

Earlier, Jin Xiaoye had exchanged some chicken feathers with seaweed from the villagers, and now she was sorting them out.

Alright, planning to take them to town to sell.

Among all the feathers, the ones on the rooster are the most valuable. The beautiful feathers on the rooster’s body could be used for fans or headdresses used by literati scholars. Chicken feathers could also be used to make dusters or shuttlecocks, and even the less attractive feathers could be used as stuffing for clothes.

Wealthy families would use silk in their winter clothes, but ordinary families would put anything they could find, even straw.

As Li Qingzhi helped Jin Xiaoye sort out the chicken feathers, he spoke up, “Xiaoye, let me teach you the multiplication table.”

“The multiplication table?” Jin Xiaoye was curious.

For the past half month, Li Qingzhi had been teaching the two children ancient arithmetic, and he had also taught Jin Xiaoye some things.

He found that Jin Xiaoye was quite good at arithmetic, perhaps among the best in the village.

She could quickly calculate how much something would cost or how much money they could make.

Jin Xiaoye had never learned multiplication before and didn’t understand it.

Li Qingzhi explained multiplication to her.

After listening, Jin Xiaoye’s eyes lit up. “How do you memorize this multiplication table?” She had always liked doing calculations. The more she did, the faster she got, but she had never learned multiplication before.

Li Qingzhi recited it once.

He had recited it countless times when he was young, so he remembered it vividly. The only problem was reciting it in the local dialect, which was a bit unfamiliar.

Jin Xiaoye became more interested as she listened, so Li Qingzhi slowly taught her, “One times one is one, one times two is two…”

Without paper or pens, and since Jin Xiaoye couldn’t read, Li Qingzhi had to recite it repeatedly, and she followed along each time.

But Li Qingzhi didn’t get impatient at all. This was communicating with people; he would never get tired of it!

Not to mention the two children and Jin Xiaoye were looking at him with admiration!

As the day darkened and they lay in bed, Jin Xiaoye kept muttering the multiplication table, and even the two children managed to recite it roughly.

Li Qingzhi was especially happy—his wife and his children were truly diligent and intelligent!

Li Damao and Li Ermao, however, felt that their father was really amazing, knowing so many things!

But their admiration for Li Qingzhi didn’t last long.

The next day, Jin Xiaoye slaughtered the chicken, plucked its feathers, and then set off to the county town with the whole family. However, Li Qingzhi couldn’t walk much after a short while, and his pace became slower and slower.

Li Damao and Li Ermao watched their father with a perplexed expression. Their father’s walking speed was even slower than theirs!

“Do you want to take a rest?” Jin Xiaoye asked Li Qingzhi.

“No need, I’ll just walk a bit slower, I’ll be fine to continue,” Li Qingzhi said with a smile.

The original owner was almost dead but managed to walk for several days to get home. Li Qingzhi’s body was still okay, so walking to the county town was completely doable.

At most, he just had to walk slower.

As they continued walking, Li Qingzhi pointed not far away and said, “Five years ago, that’s where I was captured.”

There was a small patch of reeds there, where the bandits’ boat was hidden.

If the original owner had taken Mr. Yao’s boat to the county town, nothing would have happened.

But since the original owner was a wanted criminal, he was worried that there might be a wanted poster of him in the county town, and he was afraid that Yao Shaogong, who was relatively knowledgeable, would notice something wrong, so he chose to go to the county town alone.

Unfortunately, he ran into the bad guys.

Jin Xiaoye was startled and looked in that direction before finally saying, “In the future, don’t go out of the village alone.”

Li Qingzhi smiled and replied, “Alright.”

He wanted to survive and live for a long, long time, so he would definitely pay attention to his safety.

And Jin Xiaoye had to be even more careful than him!